Clothesrack



April 14, 1,533,470

vi 0- G- SCHMITT GLOTHESRACK Filed April 14, 1922 A TTORIVEYS Patented Apr. 14, 1925.

OTTO G. $CI-IMLITT, 01E- CI-IICAGO, ILLINOIS;

CLOTHESRACK.

Application filed April 14, 1955 do all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatl, O'r'ro G. Sonnrr'r, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cool: and State of Illinois, have invented a new anc useful Improvement in Glothesraclrs, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in clothes racks, and it consists in the combinations, constructions, and arrangements herein described and claimed.

An object of my invention. is to provide an improvement over that form of the device shown in my prior application for patent on clothes rack, Serial No. 526,685, filed January 3, 1922. 'In said prior application, T'disclosed a clothes rack in which all of the members can be disassembled one from the other and be packed in a small space for shipment. The construction of the presentdevice is primarily designed to obviate the disadvantage of having to assemble all of the members of the rack. To this end, I permanently secure the members of the telescopic or lazy-tong supporting frames to each other. These supports, when in collapsed position, maybe packed in as small a space as when they are entirely dis assembled.

A further object of my invention is to provide a device of the character described in which the locking means permits the assembly of the rack in only the right way.

A further object of my invention is to provide a device of the character described which is very simple in construction, consists of the minimum number of parts when disassembled, and which can be assembled by anyone.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part of this application, in whicl Figure 1 is apersp-ective view of the assembled clothes rack,

Figure 2 is a sectional view of one of the joints partially assembled, and

Figure 3 is a sectional view of an assembled joint. r

A relatively large expense is incurred in the shipment of the ordinary collapsible Serial No. 552,465.

clothes racir. This is due to the fact that the rack is more or less bulky when in collapsed position and must be crated before it can be shipped. The crating ofeach rack obviously is expensive. Furthermore, the rack when crated has to be shipped by express. I have found that by disassembling the rack, the raclr canbe packed into a very small space and furthermore, does not have to be crated. The rack when packed in this small space can be shipped by parcel post instead of by express, thereby saving a great deal in the shippingcost.

In carrying out my invention, Iprovide two lazy tong supports or frames 1 and 2 which comprise a plurality of sticks or slats 3 pivoted together at their ends and midpoints. The slats or bars 3 are pivotally secured to each other by sleeves 4 which are disposed in alined openings 5 of the bars 3. In Figure 2, I have shown the sleeve 4 disposed in the openings 5. It will be noted that the sleeve 4 is provided with an outwardly extending flange 6. The opposite end of the sleeve 4 is then upset so as to provide a flange 7 (see Figure 3). In this manner, the bars 3 are permanently secured to each other.

The lazy-tong supports 1 and 2 are secured to each other by transversely extending rods 8. The ends of the rods-8 are provided with annular: grooves 9. It will be noted that the groove 9 tapers inwardly from the surface of the rod 8 and has a shoulder 10 which forms a head 11 to the rod. The rods 8 have a groove 9, a shoulder 10, and a head 11 at each end thereof.

The sleeves 4 have a locking means which permanently locks the rods 8 'in place when they are assembled therein. Furthermore, the locking means permits the rods 8 to enter the sleeves 4 from only one side. This construction provides a rack which can only be assembled in the right way. ,The locking means constitutes a prong 12 which is struck up from the inner wall of the sleeve 4 (see Figure The end of the spring stop or prong 12 bears against the shoulder 11 when the rod 8 is disposed within the sleeve 4. The spring 12 prevents the removal of the rod 8 from the sleeve 4 when the rod is once assembled therein. The spring stop 12, however, does not prevent the rod 8 from being rotated within the sleeve 4, or prevent the bars 3 from swinging about the sleeve 4.

In other words, when the bars 8 are assemble'd in the sleeves i, the rack resembles the ordinary clothes rack in every detail, and like the ordinary clothes rack, it cannot be disassembled. Furthermore, the spring stop 12 prevents the rod? 8 from entering the opposite end of the sleeve 1 than that shown in Figure 3, since the end of the stop 12 engages with the head 11 and prevents any further movement of the rod 8 into the sleeve 4. The rack is therefore practically fool proof and can readily be assembled by anyone.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device, the operation thereof may be readily understood. As heretofore stated, the lazy-tong supports 1 and 2 cannot be disassembled. The rack is not assembled until after it reaches its destination. In shipping, ports 1 and 2 are folded into a small space, and the rods 8 are disposed therewith. The device does not have to be crated, and also does not have to be shipped by express. The device can be readily assembled and provides a'permanent structure when once assembled, i. e., it cannot again be disassembled.

In Figure 1, the top rods 8 do not extend through two of the bars 3. In this case, the sleeves dare of half the length as the other sleeves. These smaller sleeves are provided the lazy-tong sup with spring stops 12 which effectually lock the rods 8 in place when assembled.

T he device is very simple in construction, and can be readily assembled by anyone. It can be packed into a small space for ship ment and does not have to be crated. It will therefore be apparent that the shipping costs are reduced to a minimum.

The sleeves at frictionally engage with the bars 3 and prevent the bars from rotating about the sleeves, except when manually moved. The feet of the device also frictionally engage with the floor or other supporting surface, and are prevented from out ward movement with respectto each other.

1. A collapsible clothes rack comprising bars together a rod carried by said sleeve,

and means for locking said rod in said sleeve, said means permitting said rod to be inserted into said sleeve from only one end.

OTTO G. SGHMITT. 

